What a way to start off the the 111th Men's Division I NCAA Championships at kampen Golf Course at Purdue. The Flashes, behind a strong performance from senior David Markle, find themselves six strokes off the lead and tied for fourth place after one round of golf (13 over par 301).

Markle birdied the sixth, seventh, 13th and 17th hole to shoot a 2 under par 70 on the day. He is currently one shot behind the individual lead. Still three rounds to go, but wow what a good start for the Flashes and especially Markle. See for yourself.

It is a pretty slow time of year for Kent State athletics. The baseball and softball teams are now done. As is women’s golf. Although It should be a fun watching the Kent State men’s golf team takes another shot at the NCAA Championships in the next few days.

The Flashes are set for an 8:07 a.m. tee time tomorrow on the 10th hole of Purdue University’s Kampen Course. Kent State is one of just 30 teams vying for the Division I title. It is the first time they have been to the championships since 2004 and 13th trip overall.

On a day when the Kent State baseball team begins its quest for its seventh Mid-American Conference Tournament title, awards from its regular season began to accumulate. Juniors Greg Rohan, a power-hitting first baseman, and Chris Carpenter, a right-handed pitcher, were selected as the MAC Player of the Year and MAC Pitcher of the Year.

Rohan led the conference in home runs (19), RBI (58) and slugging percentage (.772). He also tied former Flash Eric O’Brien (2001) for second most home runs in a single season at KSU.

It appears Geno Ford is on the verge of putting the finishing touches on his recruiting class. Justine Greene, a 6 foot 7 inch power forward from Abraham Lincoln High School in Brooklyn, NY is expected to sign a lter of intent to play for Kent State next fall according to Kentsportsreport.com. Greene averaged a double-double last year and joins three new big men on the Flashes.

Kudos to Ford for having a desparate need for big men and only having two scholarships at the end of the season. He now has four new bigs, two JUCO and two high school, to join Julian Sullinger and Brandon Parks.

The Kent State softball team's season came to end Sunday in NCAA Regional Competition at Alumni Field in Ann Arbor, Mich. After eliminating Wright State and Notre Dame Saturday The Flashes fell to fourth-seeded Michigan 5-0. The Wolverines (51-6) advance to NCAA Super Regional competition.

Michigan pitcher Jordan Taylor threw complete game one-hit shutout striking out 11 of the 22 batters she faced. Senior Gabrielle Burns took the loss. She pitched four plus innings giving up two hits, two runs and walking five.

The Kent State men’s golf team shot an 11 over par 295 to move into a tie for 11th place heading into today’s final round of the NCAA Central Regional play at the Scarlet Course on the Campus of the Ohio State University.

The top 10 teams and top two individuals will advance to the NCAA Championships May 28-31 at the Kampen Course in West Lafayette, Ind.

Kent State basketball coach Geno Ford signed his third recruit of the summer by inking 6-foot-8 forward/center Anthony Simpson. The Illinois native averaged nine points, nine rebounds and two blocked shots on the season last year at Highland Community College in Freeport Ill. He has spent the last two seasons there.

The Kent State men’s golf team finished in a tie for 15th place after one round of play in the NCAA Central Regional at the Scarlet Course on the Campus of the Ohio State University. The Flashes are 18 over par 302 as a team, 12 strokes behind leader Wake Forest (6 over par 290).

Senior David Markle is tied for 17th place in the individual competition. He currently sits four strokes back of leader Brendan Gielow, of Wake Forest. Markle’s first round score is 2 over par 73.

The Kent State men’s golf team is set to tee off today at 12:35 as part of the NCAA Central Regional competition at the Ohio State University Scarlet Golf Course. The top 10 teams and two individuals will advance to the NCAA Championships May 28-31 at the Kampen Course in West Lafayette, Ind.

After coming in second place at the Mid-American Conference Tournament, the Flashes received an at-large bid marking the school’s 21st visit to regional competition. Kent State has moved onto the Championship round 12 of those times with the last visit coming in 2004.

The eighth overall pick of the 2001 draft was 0-2 with an 9.39 ERA in four appearances this season. Three of them were in relief. Van BenSchoten began the season at Indianapolis 4-0 with a 1.88 ERA, all in relief, before being called up.

It is really absurd how good Kent State sophomore pitcher Kylie Reynolds is at such a young age. As the Flashes head to Ann Arbor, Mich. to play Notre Dame Friday at 4:30 in the first round of the NCAA Regional play, Reynolds is already third in school history in strikeouts with 523.

Reynolds needs just 22 strikeouts to pass Kate Leary, who fanned 545 from 2001-2004, for second the school's all time list. Brittney Robinson, who pitched for the Flashes from 2004-2007, has the lead with 856 strikeouts.

I apologize for the lack of posts lately. In the final two weeks of school I must focus my energy on finals that make my head feel as if it may explode. But I'm back now and able to concentrate on what is really important: Kent State athletics.

The Kent State baseball team was all smiles yesterday as it survived the rain and the Zips to win the three game set. The Flashes averaged more than 12 runs a game against the Zips and were powered by the long ball.... a lot. The Flashes had two home runs in Friday's 15-7 loss. Freshmen Ben Klafczynksi (eighth of the season) and Brett Weibley (first) each hit homers. Saturday Junior first basemen Greg Rohan blasted two over the left field fence. Sophomore Jared Humphreys and junior Ryan Mitchell also went back-to-back in the fourth inning as the Flashes won 11-2.

I know this is a Kent State blog, but I can't help it if my slight obsession with major league baseball shines through. After all, I am at least discussing Kent State guys right? That is enough to justify it.